Utah Jazz’s Likelihood to Trade Lauri Markkanen Getting Slimmer

With the start that Lauri Markkanen has had to his fourth season with the Utah Jazz, it feels like the odds of a trade coming to fruition to ship him out have begun to dwindle compared to how hot the chatter has been through the past two seasons.

He's averaging a career-high in points, is eyeing another trip back to the All-Star Game, and has been a real bright spot for the Jazz while the losses have begun to pile up— which in the eyes of those around the league, could lead Utah opting to build around him moving forward rather to seek a package deal.

Per a recent report from NBA insider Marc Stein on The Stein Line, teams are becoming more "convinced" that the Jazz will hold onto Markkanen past this year's trade deadline and will look to keep building around him this summer.

"Difficult as it can be for rival teams to read the intentions of a front office that now houses Austin Ainge as well as Danny Ainge, more teams than not that we speak to are increasingly convinced that the Jazz are more likely to try to add to their Markkanen-led core this Trade Season rather than trade Markkanen away," Stein wrote.

Lauri Markkanen Sticking Around in Utah?

The chances of a Markkanen blockbuster coming to form has always been a possibility in the cards, but that's come with a high price tag from the Jazz front office for any team interested in acquiring him.

Through the past two summers, that ideal package never developed, and Utah decided to stand pat with their one-time All-Star, inking him onto a long-term deal in the summer of 2024— signaling that the Jazz were happy to keep their guy around, and Markkanen was content with his current situation in Salt Lake City.

Now midway through the 2025-26 season, that status hasn't changed for either Markkanen and the Jazz, and as he continues to show why he was worth that contract over the course of this year, it's given Utah's front office less of a reason to trade him.